There is something almost beautiful about being frustrated. That annoying tick at the back of your mind, scraping the truth into your head and as you gaze from the comfort of your settee watching characters do something incredibly stupid. That burning sensation where you want to throw a china cup to the ground, watch it smash into tiny bits and knowing it will never leap up into your hands, fixing itself. Mainly because that is the only satisfying conclusion you are going to get from watching a certain television; a smashed china cup isn’t going to fix itself. Hannibal, however, is enraging in this week’s episode and it is done in such an eloquent way it can be forgiven. Sort of.
Well, this episode certainly showed us exactly how magnificent an actor Raul Esparza is. Original, his role as Dr Frederick Chilton served as a throwback to an ignorant and irritating character. But his position in Hannibal during season two shifted and he gradually became the voice of reason, the only person happily putting two and two together. It’s interesting to see that change, from a megalomaniac vain character to someone who is adamant Hannibal is the Ripper. Of course, he served as comic relief for some but as his story reached a chilling conclusion, he quickly became a favourite character on the show. (Chilton was the one who penned Hannibal the Cannibal, after all.) Esparza is magnificent at this, subverting Chilton and helping him grow.
There is still a tantalising future for Hannibal. We know it because we were treated to a snippet of it and the balls are rolling. If only they’d snowball a little bit faster and gain momentum. Next week promises to be more about Jack Crawford and Will Graham pretending to be friends with Hannibal to coerce him into slipping up. Or so it seems because I am still unsure whether Crawfords neon sign from before isn’t buzzing on and off. Still, not every series can have high octane drama and this was more middling with excitement brewing in its brutal ending. Let’s hope this filler is the only one.
Let’s hope the china cup stays broken.